I walked alone through the garden at dawn and realized every path still held a memory I could almost hear if I stood still long enough.
The grass was damp under my shoes. The sky had barely begun to lighten. I stopped near the fountain and closed my eyes. For a moment I could almost hear Hope’s small laugh from years ago, the sound of Lucas arguing with Rose over a ball, the quieter steps of Noah when he used to follow us without saying much. The memories felt close enough to touch.
“I thought I might find you out here,” Dylan said behind me.
I turned. He held two mugs, steam rising in the cool air. “Couldn’t sleep?”
“Not really,” I answered. “My mind kept walking these paths without me. I decided to join it.”
He handed me a mug and stood beside me. “Which memory found you first?”
“H
